While making a mandolin, I found that a rebate plane would be very useful. So I made one.

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You can use a chisel for the plane blade but a few years back I found some replacement plane blades that were deeply discounted and so I bought a bunch of them just because I knew I would want to do something like this someday. And that day has finally come.

On a regular plane like this the sides create a gap that prevents the plane blade from cutting all the way to the edges. The blade on a rebate plane on the other hand, allows the blade to go right out to one or both of the edges. Which allows you to get right into corners or even make a groove in the wood.

The plane blade on a wood bodied plane is held and locked into place with a wooden wedge, which may seem rather primitive, but it works really well.

The blade on a rebate plane is set at 45 degrees. A groove is cut in both sides of the main body block where the thin part of the blade is and then wood pieces are glued into place. This holds the plane together and keeps blade in place.

It didn't turn out half bad. But before I go any further, the wood gets dirty pretty quick so I want to put a finish on it. Last year I made a finish from linseed oil & bees wax using wax that came from my own bee hives so I'll put a couple of coats and let it dry.

Wooden plane blades are adjusted by tapping on the back of the body to remove or loosen the wedge, and tapping on the wedge and/or the blade to tighten everything back up.

After a little tinkering and adjustment my little plane works pretty good and it should work even better after another trip to the sharpening stone. This is my first attempt at making a plane and it was a lot of fun. It's a great rainy day project so you can bet I'll be making at least several more.

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